Strand lacer for reels



y 1957 w. B. LOWE ETAL 2,798,593

STRAND LACER FOR REELS Original Filed April 28, 1949 Patented July 9; 1957 fie STD LAGER FOR HEELS William E. Lowe, Swarthmore, and Harry E. Papa, Norwood, Pa, assignorsto American Viscose Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa a corporation of Delaware Original application April Zti, 1949,,Seriai No. 90,122. Divided and this application May, 15, 1953, Serial No. 355,252

3 Claims. (Cl. 203 l) This invention relates to reels of the type adapted to receive and advance a strand through a helical path over a peripheral surface thereof and particularly to the threading or lacing of such reels. The term strand includes yarns, threads, cords, monofilaments and continuous filamentary bundles of any type which may be passed overa thread-advancing reel.

This application is a division of our prior application Serial No. 90,122, filed April 28, 1949, which has issued of Patent No. 2,661,552. That prior application discloses a method for lacing thread-advancing reels as herein claimed.

Thread'advancing reels may be readilylaced or threaded when the reels are exposed and/or supported at one end only and operated at the usual speed of strand travel of conventional rayon yarn manufacturing practice. However, considerable diificultyis encountered in lacing reels which are substantially enclosed by housings, treating tanks, etc., or when the reels are supported at both ends. The lacing problem is greatly aggravated by strand speeds which require the rotation of the thread-advancing means at peripheral rates ranging above 150 meters per minute. At such speeds, the thread or strand tends to be thrown away from the strand-supporting surface of the rolls by centrifugal force, and moreover, the strand is traveling so rapidly that it is physically impossible for an operator to either see or manually catch the advancing end or a specific portion of the strand and lead or guide it, through a series of thread-storing thread-advancing reels or other thread-handling devices.

Consequently, a principal object of the invention is to provide means and a method for introducing the strand upon the rotating surface of the thread-advancing means. It is another object, to facilitate the lacing of a strand over a series of rotating strand-advancing reels. Still another object is to provide means and a method particularly adapted for lacing thread-advancing means which are either enclosed or supported at both ends with respect to an axis of rotation. It is a further object to provide said lacing means by a simple modification of existing equipment. Other objects, features, and advantages will become apparent from the following description. of the invention and the drawings relating thereto in which- Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic pictorial view illustrating apparatus as well as a method of the invention;

Fig.2 is a side elevation of-the embodiment of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary pictorial view of a reel bar embodying the invention;

Fig. 4 illustrates an element which may be fitted over the end of a reel bar of the type shown in Fig. 3 as a further modification;

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic end view of two sets of alternately spaced reel bars illustrating the eccentricity of one set with respect to the other;

Fig. .6 is a fragmentary longitudinal section illustrating a reel bar of modified construction in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 7 illustrates in partial section a simple portable the reels.

.21 device constructed according to the invention which may be used on single-end-supported reels in place of permanentfittings; and

Fig. 8 illustratesa modified shaft-engaging portion for the device shown in Fig. 7.

According to the invention, a thread-advancing reel is simply and eflfectivelylaced singlyor in series by diverting or leading a running thread into contact with one or more thread gripping, elements positioned along a peripheral marginal surface of the thread-advancing reel at one side of its thread-carrying surfaces.

In Fig. l a thread-advancing reel 8- is shown With its thread-supporting surface-9 filled with thread .and the thread it) ready to be transferred' to a thread-advancing reel 12. According toathis figure a hook or pick 14 has been inserted under one of the most advanced coils of the thread 10 and lifted from a'peripherally disposed surface of the rotating ree1-8 carrying thread 'at the approximate area of departure for the thread from the reel 8. The thread travelsaround thepick while supportedthereby, The strand is subject =or susceptible to considerable stretching and sufficient slack may be accumulated from the strand as 'it runs over the pick and while subjected by the pick to. tensionshort ofbreakageto extend'or carry the strandto the next thread-advancing reel 12.

The strand and-hook 14are illustrated in Fig. 1 in dotted outline in the position wherein the loop of strand is extended until it-may 'beheld in substantial tangency with the periphery of the: reel 12-whereupon a section of the loop -may, be-inserted between a hook'lti'andthe surface ofthe reel 12 during rotation of the reel. With the hook now'extending within the loop of strand, the loop is promptly wrapped: onto the reel12. The sectionof the loop returningto the reels is immediately put under such tension as to breakzit. The section of 'theploop passing toward the reel'12 is, on the otherhand, subjected to little tension 'becauseit is beingfed toward the reel 12 at substantially, its peripheral speed. The engagement with a receivingreelof a loop of strand withdrawn from a, supply reel in the maner justdescribed explains the manner in which the strand is automatically broken in the operation :of thevarious "modifications of the lacing apparatus hereinafter'described. The hook 16 or-hook 16a of: the reel 8 is positioned orsecured to any marginal portion of the surface of' the reel 12 which is out of alignment with the normal line of departure of the thread 10 leaving the reel 8, so that asrthe reel 12;rotates to-collect the strand which;follows the portion caught by the 'hook 16 onto the reel surface, theadvancing end of the strand is effectively folded under one or more convolutions of the strand wound on the .reel immediately thereafter. The strand winds upon itself in this manner until normal operating alignment of thestrand is established between The thread-advancing action of the reel carries the first-formed convolutions off the hook and the marginal surface provided for lacing the reel toward and onto the normal thread-supporting surface. The convolutions first formed are more or lesswrapped upon each other to form a band which is carried intact across the thread-supporting surface to the thread-discharging region of the reelu The formation of such a band ensures the transfer of the strand end to the stranddis charging region of the reel surface without the end he comingloose or caught by other portions of the machine which may be spaced at close clearance withthe threadadvancing reels.

Fig. 2 illustrates two thread-advancing reels positioned to support and transfer the thread through predetermined thread-storage ranges a and b. The thread makes its initial contact withthereel 12 at thepoint 15after normal operationis established. This point is determined by the point at which the thread 10 leaves the reel 8, both points lying in a plane at right angles to the reel axes when these axes are parallel. The dotted line 1% indicates the path along which the thread is held or diverted when using the pick 14 to engage the hook 16. It may be readily seen, therefore, that as the thread is passed around the marginal portion of the surface of the reel 12 outside of the range [2 that the thread-advancing action of the reel will quickly tend to transfer convolutions of thread formed on the marginal portion toward the threaddischarging end of the reel. Consequently, the normal path of the strand intersects the surface of the reel 12 at one extremity. The reels are therefore self-cleaning with respect to the marginal portions of their surfaces used for lacing purposes; any tangles or snarls which are formed about the hook 16 are removed therefrom and laterally transferred to the opposite end of the reel by normal thread-advancing action.

Fig. 3 illustrates an end portion 20 of a thread-supportl ing element or bar of a type conventionally used in the construction of thread-advancing reels but adapted to the present invention. Such reels comprise two sets of these bars supported in alternately spaced arrangement (illustrated in Fig. 5), of which one set moves relative to the other set to produce thread-advancement in a direction parallel to the axis of rotation of the reel. The ends of one or both sets of bars of the strand-receiving end of the reels (Fig. 5) may be provided with a roughened surface at 22 adapted to grip a thread which is held into substantial tangency with the periphery of the reel adjacent the roughened surface and then brought into contact therewith during the lacing operation. ably, the ends of only one set of the bars are roughened although thread transfer is not precluded if the ends of both sets of bars are roughened. The bar 20 will ordinarily comprise a corrosion-proof material such as glass, a resinous material such as a phenol-formaldehyde prod- Preferuct, a resin-bonded fabric laminate, stainless steel, or a bar to provide a surface to which a separate strandgripping element 21 may be secured. As another expedient for securing a thread-gripping surface at the end of the bar, a sleeve or collar 24 may be provided such as shown in Fig. 4 adapted to fit over the end of the bar 20. In the latter case, the element 24 is preferably made of a resilient material such as a vulcanizable composition containing a rubber or a rubber-like polymerizate, but various plastics or resins of a flexible nature will also be employed. The less resilient and flexible materials selected for this use must be molded with a greater degree of precision in order to tightly fit the ends of the bars 20.

When separate elements are attached to thread-advancing bars to provide thread-gripping surfaces, as shown or suggested in Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6, it may be desirable to avoid substantial protrusion of the surfaces of such elements beyond the longitudinal surfaces of the bars by recessing the portions of the bars supporting the elements as shown in Fig. 6 so as to partially or entirely compensate for the thickness of the thread-gripping sleeve 2% or other thread-gripping element attached to the bar 20a. Such an expedient will be desirable, for example, where there is not adequate clearance between the adjacent bars, or other portions of the reel to accommodate the sleeves 24; generally it is desirable for efficient thread-advancing action to have the thread-gripping surface substantially in flush with the remainder of the thread-supporting surface of the same bar. It is permissible, however, to have the surface portions which are adapted for thread-gripping raised with respect to'the remainder of the thread-supporting surface of the same bar if all of the bars are provided with similarly raised portions within the circumferentially-extending zone provided for thread lacing. It is not essential that all of these raised surfaces be of the thread-gripping type; for example, alternate surfaces in a circumferential direction may be rough while the ones between them or other bars are smooth. It will be understood that the proper relationship in the thread-supporting surfaces of the bars is established when the surfaces of all the bars within a common longitudinal zone of the reel irrespective of the set to which they belong are disposed at identical radii with respect to their respective axes of revolution.

The surface of any strand-gripping means provided in the marginal surface of a thread-advancing reel must be such as to permit lateral movement of the thread in response to the thread-advancing action of the reel. A saw-tooth surface, such as that of the element 24, is satisfactory in this respect because it provides lateral ridges 26 along which the thread may slide during lateral advancement but which also grip the thread When the thread-supporting surfaces of the bars 20 occupy a position radially outward with respect to that of surfaces in circumferential alignment of alternately spaced bars. In the event the thread-gripping surface provide-d has ridges or surfaces which are not parallel to the longitudinal surface of the bar 20 or has a granulated 0r irregularly abraded surface, the movement of the bar relative to the adjacent bars should be such as to permit disengagement of the bar with the strands extending across and supported by the surfaces of the adjacent bars.

The present invention as hereinbefore described refers to elements which are permanently mounted on the threadadvancing reels in the manner indicated. Fig. 7 illustrates a portable hand device which may be held against the end of a reel shaft to produce rotation of a member and which has a purpose similar to that accomplished by the permanently mounted strand-engaging hooks 16 of the earlier described apparatus. The device 36 of Fig. 7 comprises a shaft 32 rotatably supported within an annular handle 33 by bearings 34 and 35. The outer races of said bearings are secured in position within the handle 33. The shaft 32 is cut to varying diameters to form the shoulders 38 and 39 which position the inner races of the bearings. An L-shaped arm 41 anchored at one end to a collar 42 secured to the shaft 32 by a set screw or other means, extends laterally from the shaft at a radius which maintains the extreme end of the arm at close clearance with an outer margin of the thread-supporting surface 43 of the reel 44.

The shaft 32 may be provided with an adapter of any type, which may be brought into engagement with a portion of the reel at reasonable pressure exerted manually, to connect the shafts 32 and 50 in driving relationship without any loss of rotative speed therebetween. in Fig. 7, an adapter 48 is appropriately recessed so that it may be jammed onto a nut 49 in threaded relationship with the rotating reel shaft 50. The adapter comprises an outer shell and an internally tapered cup 52 contained therein which is preferably formed from a resilient material. The cup has an inner surface tapered with respect to the shaft axis so that the cup may be more readily jammed into non-rotatable relationship with the nut 49 even though the reel is rotating at several hundred revolutions per minute. The interior surface of the adapter may be frusto-pyrarnidal or frusto-conical. As an alternative arrangement for securing non-rotatable relationship between the reel shaft 5tl and the shaft 32, an adapter 30a illustrated in Fig. 8, may be mounted in place of the adapter 43 of Fig. 7, and the device brought into engagement with a shaft 5% having an end portion suitably recessed to receive the adapter. The cooperating surfaces of either, or both, the adapter 30a or the recess 54 may be roughened, grooved, or ridged to obtain positive engagement therebetween.

The device 30 is particularly useful when lacing reels which are supported at one end only regardless of whether the strand is advanced away from or toward the supported end. In using this type of device, the operator may hold it into engagement with the reel with one hand while lifting a strand by means such as the pick 14 from an adjacent reel with the other hand. The thread is then led into the clearance 56 which defines the space between the surface of the reel and the path of revolution swept by the arm 41. The strand is promptly picked up by the arm 41 which holds the caught portion of the strand in fixed relationship with the adjacent portion of the reel surface; in this manner the strand feeds onto the reel surface When the strand-receiving portion of the reel surface is nearest the unsupported end of the reel, the convolutions of strand immediately formed are wound over each other until, as a result of the threadadvancing action of the reel, the convolutions formed along the lacing area of the reel are carried into the normal thread-supporting surface of the reel. The portion of the strand caught upon the arm 41 is pulled off the arm and carried laterally toward the other end of the reel. When the strand-receiving portion of the reel surface is nearest the supported end of the reel, the strand may be first guided or led upon the strand-discharging portion of the strand-supporting surface. The strand passing onto the reel from an exterior source quickly aligns itself with the normal strand-receiving portion of the reel within a couple of revolutions of the reel. The portion of the strand attached to the arm 41, having been wound about the strand-discharging surface of the reel, is advanced off the end of the reel and the device 30 is thereupon readily disengaged from the strand.

While preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it is to be understood that changes and variations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In transferring a running strand from one device adapted for storing and advancing a plurality of successively-connected windings of the strand to another of such devices, the method comprising the steps of winding the strand onto the first-named device in juxtaposed windings until the loading thereof has progressed beyond the desired point for withdrawing the strand from the device toward the second device, lifting a winding of the strand away from said point and gently stretching successive portions of the strand to form a running loop thereof, bringing the loop into positive engagement with the moving strand-supporting surface of the second device, and catching the loop with a surface of the second device whereupon the section of the loop returning to the first device breaks and the section of the loop advancing toward the second device is held thereby to advance the strand to form windings about said strand-supporting surface.

2. The method of loading a rotating thread-advancing reel and transferring strand therefrom to another rotating reel comprising the steps of winding the strand onto the thread-storage surface of the first-named reel until excess windings have collected adjacent the stranddischarging end of the first-named reel, hooking a winding from said strand-storage surface at a predetermined point corresponding to a desired loading of the reel, and lifting the hooked and running strand gently without breaking it to form a loop, and positively engaging the strand of the loop with the peripheral surface of the second-named reel whereupon the section of the loop returning to the first reel breaks and the section of the loop advancing toward the second reel is secured to the periphery of the second reel whereby the strand is advanced longitudinally to form windings about the second reel.

3. In transferring a running strand from one rotating thread-advancing reel to another thread-advancing reel, the second reel having at least a portion of its threadstorage surface in spaced superposition with that of the first reel; the method comprising the steps of winding a strand onto one of the reels until the loading thereof has progressed beyond the desired point for normal loading of the reel, lifting a winding of the strand at said point toward the nearest portion of the periphery of the other reel, said strand being gradually lifted away from the first reel to the second reel to stretch successive sections of the running strand to thus accumulate such slack therein as to form a loop in the strand of such length as to reach the periphery of the second reel, passing the loop of strand into positive engagement with the periphery of the second-named reel approximately at said peripheral portion, catching the loop by a. surface of the second reel to secure it thereto whereupon the section of the loop returning to the first reel breaks and the section of the loop advancing toward the second reel is secured to the periphery of the second reel whereby the strand is advanced longitudinally to form windings about the second reel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,227,723 Knebusch et a1 Jan. 7, 1941 2,381,643 Bruenner Aug. 7, 1945 2,388,068 McDermott Oct. 30, 1945 2,661,522 Lowe et a1. Dec. 8, 1953 

